The Shield

The Shield

2002
The Shield
The Shield

The Shield

8.7 | TV-MA | en | Drama

The story of an inner-city Los Angeles police precinct where some of the cops aren't above breaking the rules or working against their associates to both keep the streets safe and their self-interests intact.

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Seasons & Episodes

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6
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EP13  Family Meeting
Nov. 25,2008
Family Meeting

Officers in the Barn investigate a woman's disappearance and the arrival of a large drug shipment; lives change forever.

EP12  Possible Kill Screen
Nov. 18,2008
Possible Kill Screen

Olivia joins forces with the Strike Team to catch a Mexican drug king and his shipment. Meanwhile, Dutch cleans up Billings' mess, and the death of a woman associated with the Strike Team prompts an investigation by Claudette.

EP11  Petty Cash
Nov. 11,2008
Petty Cash

Corrine agrees to be Vic and Shane's go-between and also agrees to cooperate with Claudette and Dutch as she does so. Meanwhile, Vic comes to an understanding with Aceveda and seeks one out with Olivia; and Claudette assigns Ronnie to work with Julian to investigate the murder of a high-school football star, keeping Ronnie out of the barn and unable to intercept the letter Shane sent to Claudette detailing the Strike Team's "sins."

EP10  Party Line
Nov. 04,2008
Party Line

While Shane remains holed up in L.A. with Mara and Jackson, Corinne decides to cooperate with Dutch and Claudette, who's now spearheading the LAPD effort to bring down Vic. Meanwhile, Vic plays Aceveda, Pezuela, Beltran and ICE against each other. But Ronnie's tempted to simply give up and run to Mexico. "And you should run too man" he tells Vic.

EP9  Moving Day
Oct. 28,2008
Moving Day

Vic closes in on Shane, Mara and their sick young son; Claudette dismantles the Strike Team; Pezuela offers Acevada "assistance" for his mayoral campaign; Rita Denton (Frances Fisher) comes on to Dutch; and Billings' ex-wife and daughter are fearful when a registered sex offender moves into their neighborhood.

EP8  Parricide
Oct. 21,2008
Parricide

A local priest may be protecting drug dealers; Dutch and Billings close in on attempted cop killers; Corrine learns uncomfortable truths about Vic.

EP7  Bitches Brew
Oct. 14,2008
Bitches Brew

A prostitute from Vic's past is the key to taking down a violent drug dealer; Dutch worries about Claudette's health; Danny takes drastic measures to protect her child.

EP6  Animal Control
Oct. 07,2008
Animal Control

Vic sets into motion plans to end the gang threat as his relationship with Cassidy deteriorates; Dutch and Billings investigate a possible sleepwalking murderer.

EP5  Game Face
Sep. 30,2008
Game Face

Claudette encounters a murderous old nemesis; Vic confronts Olivia about her political connections; Dutch's case gets personal.

EP4  Genocide
Sep. 23,2008
Genocide

The gang war erupts in unexpected ways that Vic cannot control; Dutch and Billings' homicide investigation grows into something more disturbing; Cassidy reaches out to Danny.

EP3  Money Shot
Sep. 16,2008
Money Shot

Vic works an angle to make himself valuable to the Armenian mob; Corrine finds herself in a surprising legal jam; Tina targets a producer of adult entertainment.

EP2  Snitch
Sep. 09,2008
Snitch

As a local gang war heats up, Vic positions himself as a valuable commodity to the warring parties; Corrine and Cassidy confront Vic.

EP1  Coefficient of Drag
Sep. 02,2008
Coefficient of Drag

Vic challenges Shane and deals with threats to his family; a federal agent arrives in Farmington to investigate a recent wave of violence.

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8.7 | TV-MA | en | Drama , Crime , Action & Adventure | More Info
Released: 2002-03-12 | Released Producted By: Fox Television Studios , Columbia TriStar Television Country: United States of America Budget: 0 Revenue: 0 Official Website: https://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/the-shield
Synopsis

The story of an inner-city Los Angeles police precinct where some of the cops aren't above breaking the rules or working against their associates to both keep the streets safe and their self-interests intact.

...... View More
Stream Online

The tv show is currently not available onine

Cast

Michael Chiklis , Catherine Dent , Paula Garcés

Director

Scott Brazil

Producted By

Fox Television Studios , Columbia TriStar Television

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Reviews

felixoteiza At its core The Shield is the tale of the trials & tribulations of the Strike Team, a special four-men squad that has been put together to fight crime, gangsterism and drug trafficking in the mean streets of LA and which ends up doing the same things they are supposedly fighting, to improve their own economic situation, as they recognize themselves, while waddling neck deep in a sea of denial and self righteousness.As I wrote in my SOA review, it is practically impossible to judge that series without comparing it to TS; and the opposite is true. Only that in this case the comparison is not a happy one, as it clearly is in other cases like say, Cheers and Frazier, where the talent and the overall quality of the first series percolates, even enhanced, to the spin off, with good acting, hilarious plots and subplots and above all, superb writing all over. But such is not the case here. There are so many things that worked to perfection in TS and that are nowhere to be seen in SOA, that the only listing of them would take this whole review so let's just mention the most flagrant of them. The complete lack of realism in SOA, while even the smallest bit of a situation, conflict, character in TS reeks of unabashed realism, especially the last, from an always overexcited Shane to a conflicted Aceveda to bit players such as the prostitute who wouldn't bother calling the police because she had "the mouth full of dick" at the time. Or Vic Mackey dealing with the problem of having two autistic children. That is one of the things that make TS such a great series, when it comes to realism, compared to which SOA looks more like the febrile violent fantasies of an overexcited six year old or the daydreaming of a dead bored 9-to-5 office worker.(The IRA playing cynical political games with a kidnapped baby, really, Sutter?)I can't imagine one single element on which Ryan struck a note less than perfect here, from the fictional police station—a converted church of all places! where sinners/perps must tell of their sins/crimes to a priest/cop over a background of tinted glass windows!—to the lead character. I can't remember either another series where action, drama, even tragedy, meshes, so flawlessly, even harmoniously, with unabashed humor, as in those hilarious bits usually provided by bit players, generally witnesses, as for ex. the couple who had come up to give testimony on a crime and that, as the result of their unending fighting, end up instead in the cage facing criminal charges; or when Vic connects the monitor to show a nosy reporter how they could see what's happening in the interrogation room only to see his pal Shane banging a detained prostitute! Speaking of which, as Chiklis put it so many times in the DVD interviews, Vic is a man who spends his life juggling with four balls but who has to be prepared at any moment to receive the fifth one and then send it flawlessly up with the rest. It has been said many times that what characterizes the men of the Strike Team is their great capacity for denial, but in Vic's case we may add also that he is a master of improvisation. One of the things I marveled most about watching TS, which enjoyed the most also, is how he could react in a fraction of a second to a new, unexpected bit of information, presence, development, that could have surely made his entire building collapse in a cloud of guilt and damnation, yet he is always capable of pulling off his sleeve some little masterpieces of improvisation, for example when explaining to Cpt. Rawling why he didn't inform her of the Shane/Army/Antoine situation down to waving Hi to his daughter in the midst of a beating he is giving to a baddie. And Chiklis is the perfect man and body for the part—another magic touch by Ryan—not only because his oozing energy and earnest disposition but also for his physical features. He is not tall and athletic, but short and heavyset, which emphasizes even more the burdens and tribulations he is carrying for the entire series, so he'll never give us the impression of the guy who swiftly, flawlessly, takes care of business, no matter how difficult that may be, but that of the regular guy arduously, painfully struggling with oh so many things at the same time! With someone like say, Ron Perlman in the role, all that pathos could have been lost, Perlman's character would have just stared at the problem, at the people causing it, paused for a moment and then simply muttered that he would take care of it. (BTW, to be fair, in no way I am belittling him, if there is ONE thing great about SOA, that is Ron Perlman).TS must be the only one TV series of which I have watched the entire collection of DVD meetings and interviews. Of special interest to me were the videos of the meetings of the staff where they discuss future plots and subplots and the further development of current ones, like the story for example where one Armenian girl has her sister killed and they, the staff, try to put together the relationship she will have with Vic. For anyone like myself who has always wanted to know how all these TV plots and story lines come to life that was an invaluable piece of information. Thanks to the people who made this possible. And thanks specially to Shawn Ryan, for such great series.All in all, a classic, to keep in you collection and take it out to watch whenever you feel the need for a guilty pleasure. 9/10.
Hal Swann Story wasn't bad, acting was decent, writing was inventive at times and a bit over the top other times. Never was into police drama or crime type shows but a few have surprised me, this wasn't one of them. What compelled me to watch this was how many people said it "raised the bar", "best show ever", "one of the best" etc etc. The only thing I can conclude is that the TV audience has been so deprived of anything decent that something even as slightly above average in quality (acting, writing, story) such as this show has, came as a shock to some. But I watched The Wire recently and must have had my expectations set too high for this. This show is bush league compared to shows like the Wire so its safe to assume those ranting about this must have watched this after an episode of Honeybooboo or Duck Dynasty or even worse, the last ship(omg what the heck is that ship) as a comparison. To that, yeah this wasn't bad stuff, great....not a chance. The characters were so inconsistent over time, you couldn't recognize them after a season or two. As for the ending, a great one...? Meh, he got what he deserved, hell for a control freak is to be put into a cubicle as the world revolves without him.I watched all 7 seasons, it was entertaining at times, very repetitive plot devices used so often, you find yourself rolling your eyes. My advice to people who want to give it a try, watch season one, skip to season 7, it doesn't take much imagination to fill in the rest. Because the characters keep switching places to make the audience believe the writers came up with something new. The shield should have been called Venetus Deus Ex Machina.
The Grand Master The Shield had me hooked right from the very first episode. The Shield rewrites the rule book on police/crime dramas and it is certainly not like any other show such as Law and Order, NYPD Blue, and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The show is certainly not glamorised nor does it dilute issues raised in the show such as police corruption, politics, family matters, homosexuality, sexual assault, autism, and racism.Based on the Rampart scandal that plagued the Los Angeles Police Department in the late 1990's, The Shield focus on the LAPD's Strike Team that operates out of a disused church in the fictional Farmington Division in order to target street gangs. The strike team is led by the equally feared and respected Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) who utilises brutal tactics as well as stealing from criminals, beats suspects, blackmails others, and organises murders. Vic Mackey must also deal with issues within his family including his disintegrating marriage to his wife Corrine Mackey (Cathy Cahlin Ryan) and two of his young children have been diagnosed as autistic. Vic Mackey's best friend Shane Vendrell (Walton Goggins) is also involved in Vic's various dealings on the street. Shane Vendrell is also reckless in his actions and is openly racist and bigoted as evidenced by his various derogatory remarks. Detective Ronnie Gardocki (David Rees Snell) is calm, quietly spoken and mild mannered in contrast to the aggressive behaviours the other team members display. Ronnie manages to keep himself out of trouble but occasionally joins in when necessary. Detective Curtis "Lem" Lemansky (Kenny Johnson) is the muscle of the group, although he has a good natured personality and is extremely loyal to his friends.Other members of Farmington Division include patrol officers Danielle (Danny) Sofer (Catherine Dent) who is initially a training officer but is later promoted to Sergeant, and the rookie officer Julian Lowe (Michael Jace) who is torn between his deeply religious and moral beliefs as well as his hidden homosexuality.Also included at Farmington Division include veteran police detective Claudette Wyms (CCH Pounder) who is often seen as the moral voice of reason in the division and is also being groomed for a future leadership role within the LAPD. Her partner Detective Holland "Dutch" Wagenbach (Jay Karnes) is socially inept and sexually frustrated as well as looked down upon by fellow officers despite being a intelligent and highly capable detective.Farmington Division is run by Captain David Aceveda (Benito Martinez) who has high ambitions for a political career as well as wanting to expose Vic Mackey and the strike team for their brutal tactics and acts of misconduct. Captain Aceveda sees Vic Mackey as "Al Capone with a badge" and wants to see Vic Mackey terminated from the LAPD or even imprisoned.Michael Chiklis does a excellent job as the hard headed an morally uncompromising Vic Mackey. Michael Chiklis is without question the star of the show. He was previously known to audiences for his role as the easy going Police Commissioner Tony Scali from the early 1990's show The Commish, and The Shield introduces a tough guy side to Michael Chiklis.Many well known actors have appeared throughout the series including but nit limited to John Diehl, Glenn Close, Michael Pena, Anthony Anderson, Carl Weathers, Forest Whittaker, Laura Harring, Franke Potente, Laurie Holden, Danny Pino, Alex O'Laughlin, Mark Rolston, Frank Grillo, Frances Fisher, Paul Ben-Victor, Kirk Baltz, Scoot McNairy, Ken Jeong, Kristen Bell, and Lucinda Jenney.The Shield may not be for everyone due to its strong violence, sexual content, drug use, and adult themes, but nonetheless it is addictive viewing for loyal fans of the show. The final season ties everything up neatly. The Shield is criminally underrated, but nonetheless it is an excellent show. 10/10.
kosmasp I wasn't aware of any bad reviews here on IMDb, until I just read about them from another reviewer. I still got late into the Shield, but for other reasons. I heard about the positive hype and liking Michael Chicklis I bought the Complete Box set of the series. But I never came around seeing the show, not necessarily because of time issues, but I never felt like it. I kind of thought this would be more or less your generic cop show.I couldn't have been more wrong. And the great thing is, you're either hooked with the first episode or you aren't. The way it does end, will either appeal to you or appall you. One thing is for sure: It will not leave you thinking "whatever". Love it or hate it, this is what it is.The main theme was a bit weird and I had to get used to that chaotic music, like I had to get used to the title screens (the names moving making you feel a bit dizzy). But it all fits into what the Shield is. It is one of the most realistic, but most of all one of the most non black and white show there is. And that is referring to characters, not skin color.The in your face style (camera always present, more like a documentary), fast cuts everything moving, no slow motion effects or any other fancy effect you might expect, fast talk, works perfectly. Of course, there might be people who don't like it. And you could find more "flaws" (see title cards, but also missing bits for more characters, more interactions, more personal life) ... but there is only so much time to tell a story. And if Vic Mackey gets you hooked ... you're hooked for good. His team is clearly defined and story lines get carried through not only to other episodes, but to other seasons.Maybe you'll find your own favorite of the show, mine was Lemansky (Lemonhead). I won't go into the reasons, but you might understand when you watch. Generally season 5 has a big climax and it is never an easy watch. Your inner feelings being as divided as the characters you're rooting for ...Because it feels so real, things happening will probably get you upset, you will root for some characters while dismissing others. But it's not that easy defining who or what is good and not. And while I remain vague in that description, not revealing any plot, I can guarantee you, that you will know after one episode if this is your kind of show.Having watched this through, I can tell you I was more than surprised. Not about the ending itself, although I wouldn't say I did see that coming like it did. But about the fact, that I really wanted the show to end. You know how it is with other TV shows, you wish they'd continue on and on and on ... but with this, taking its toll not only on the characters, but on the viewer, you might find yourself in the same position. And believe me when I tell you: that is one thing you can call "good" for sure ...